


Rebuilding from the Rubble

by 2space_lesbo1



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: All fluff no pain, Barbecue Night, Character Death Fix, Endgame, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Fix-It, Found Family, Gen, Major injuries, Moving In Together, S p o i l e rs, Spoilers, adapting, learning to cope, they're all one big family change my mind, tony deserved better
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-01
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2020-02-10 22:59:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18670096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/2space_lesbo1/pseuds/2space_lesbo1
Summary: MAJJJOOORRR SPOILERSSS LIKE WOW THESE ARE MAJOR SPOILERS FOR ENDGAME PLS DONT READ ITit's going to take more to beat iron man. everyone should know that by now.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i cried
> 
> i mean, ofc i did. but still. 
> 
> tony deserved better. steve's ending was stupid. and i miss nat ;-; 
> 
> this fic isn't going to be long or grand, but there will be more chapters. no idea how many more, but you get the point. 
> 
> this is just me fixing what i think needs fixing
> 
> which is almost the entire ending. 
> 
> i loved that we got to watch thanos die twice in one movie. that was nice :) 
> 
> but anyway, i wrote this in the spur of the moment and i'm still writing like a mad woman because i need this
> 
> so read if you want

Tony’s hand is heavy. His arm is burning. Well, actually, scratch that. His entire body was burning and he couldn't tell where he started and the gauntlet ended. He could feel the stones seeping into his skin, his flesh, his being as he manages to snap his fingers. He does so shakily, but he does it. The snap resounds around him, cutting off all of the fighting and screaming and yelling and it's as if it all stops. 

He locks eyes with Thanos and smirks. Because he'd done it. 

And sure the glove was burning him, and the stones were melting his flesh, but that was ok. Just seeing the look of pure and utter defeat covering the Titan’s ugly ball sack chinned face was damned enough for him. 

Okay. That was a lie. 

He knew he was going to die if he didn't do something. 

He couldn't let himself die. For the kid’s sake. For Pepper’s. For Morgan’s. 

He couldn't die. 

He knew he wasn't allowed. Pepper would kill him. 

So, with the last remaining strength both Thor and Bruce would have been proud of, he tears the glove from his hand. He screams as he does so, making the perfect background sound for Thanos’s disappearance. Good. That damned Titan dying twice in the matter of months satisfied him. 

The glove hits the ground with a clatter as the last of the dust disappears into the air, taking with it what had been a terrifying army mere seconds ago. His knees wobble, and give out, and he lets himself fall, eyes slowly shutting. 

Or, he would have fallen, if not for a pair of hands catching him. He peels his eyes open enough to just make Peter’s face out, and, by god, he could hardly still believe that the kid was still there. Pepper appears beside him a moment later, and he could feel more hands grabbing him before he closed his eyes once more, letting himself drift off. 

Not to death. Hell no. He was Iron Man. He wasn't dying yet. He was just tired, that's all. 

 

When he wakes up again, he's in a soft, plush bed, and there is light streaming in through thin curtains. His eyes open to find a little girl- his little girl- at the foot of his bed. At first, Morgan doesn't realize that he was awake. But when she looks up at his face, a full blown grin spreads across hers and she screeches loudly with a high pitched giggle, launching herself onto his bed. 

“Daddy!” she squealed, landing on his knees. Tony flinches, lets out a little gasp of pain, but quickly pushes it down. Morgan crawls up to his stomach, wrapping her thin arms around his waist. “You took a long nap, Daddy! I was wondering when you were gonna wake up, and Mommy said it could be a while but then it took you ssssooo long and-” 

“Yeah, sorry about that, Morggy,” Tony said, grinning at the way she fussed at the nickname she hates. He pokes the top of her nose with his left hand, finding his right arm to be unresponsive. “But, I do love you 3000.” Tears gathered in his eyes. He didn't let them fall, but they fogged his vision nonetheless. 

She giggles again. “I love you 3000 too, Daddy!” 

 

After that, more and more people trickled in. Pepper first, who peels Morgan from Tony’s waist- “But I wanna hug Daddy!” “Oh stop it, you're probably hurting him and he's not saying anything because he's stubborn”- and then presses a light kiss to his forehead. She sets Morgan down in a nearby chair before sitting down on the edge of Tony’s bed, smoothing the hair of his left side down. 

“I hate to be the one to tell you,” she began, her smile soft and a tad saddened. “But saving the entire universe the way you did came with a price.”

“What? My ruggishly handsome good looks?” Tony teases, smirking. But at Pepper’s grim expression he loses that smirk, growing a tad fearful. “No. I didn't.” 

Pepper grabs a nearby hand held mirror, she avoids eye contact. “There's a reason you can't move your right arm,” she said, and then holds it up for him to see. 

His mouth falls open, but he quickly catches himself, snapping it back shut. 

The entire right side of his face was ruined. It was white grey and cracking in some spots, black lines running all through it. It looked almost like it were turning to dust just as half of the universe did those short five years ago. This cracked skin continues all up to his right hand, and now it made sense to why he couldn't move it, much less feel it. 

He presses his able hand to the right side of his face, flinching at the slight burn. Pepper sets the mirror back and gently grabs hold of his left hand, bringing it to her lips. 

“It doesn't matter,” Pepper whispered lightly, onto the back of his hand. “It doesn't matter what it did to you. You're still here. You're still alive.”

“Yeah!” Morgan chimed in from her nearby seat, her head just poking over the top of the bed. “I think you look cool, too! Like you have a super power!” 

Tony has to smile at that. “Yeah, super power,” he repeated. 

Pepper and Morgan stayed in the room as other people came trickling in. Bruce wished him well, held up his casted arm and said unamusedly, “Arm buddies.”

Peter came in next, grinning with tears in his eyes. Tony exaggeratedly rolls his eyes. “Oh come on, kid, seriously? You're gonna cry?” he said, not meaning any of the words. Just the sight of the kid made him want to cry, too 

“N- no,” Peter denied quickly, angrily wiping at the tears gathered in his eyes with the back of his hand. He stares at Tony for a moment, who stares back, and then he bursts into tears. “Yes!” 

Tony ends up with a sobbing teen hugging him, tears getting the shoulder of his hospital gown wet. Not that he minded, though. 

It took them a few minutes, but Peter eventually draws away, with some reluctance, and takes a seat beside Morgan, who begins speaking rapidly to him. He seems able to keep up, and ends up speaking just as fast back to her. Tony doesn't even try to keep up with their conversation. 

Thor comes in next, nodding to him. They claps hands together- their left ones, of course- and Thor pulls him into a half hug. Man he was getting a lot of hugs today. 

Clint comes in not long after, sad but happy. Bittersweet. 

“I wish we could tell her that you saved the day,” he said, standing beside his bed. 

“You kissing me?” Tony quips with a snort. “She'd hate to hear that.” 

Clint shakes hands with him, looking him in eye. “Thank you. For everything.” 

And then, finally, Steve comes in. He has his serious expression on his face, and Tony has to wave him off. Peter falls silent, and Morgan does too, sensing the atmosphere. Pepper keeps a wary eye on Steve, like he made her nervous. Both Sam and Bucky are in the doorway, and Tony could just see the glint of red and blue from Sam’s shoulder. Ah. Steve made his decision. 

“Come on man, you're making me feel awkward,” Tony said, doing his best to sound nonchalant when really, he was not feeling nonchalant. Oh no. His heart was racing with nerve and fear and all of the anxieties built up in the past seven years ever since they'd had their falling out. “I know I don't look that great. But trust me, I've had worse days.” 

Steve chuckles half heartedly, shaking his head. “Yeah, think I've seen you on those days,” he remarked, crossing his arms over his chest. But then he grows more serious, and nods. “I'm sorry for… everything before, Tony.” 

“Yeah, me too,” Tony said in return. He waves his hand towards Bucky in the doorway, “Least you got your buddies back.” 

“All thanks to you,” Steve points out. He pauses a moment, and smiles. “Don't tell Thor, or Bruce, but I think we've got ourselves a new strongest Avenger.” 

Tony decides to act dumb, wanting to hear Steve say it. “Really? Who?” 

“You know who, dumbass.” 

“Language.” 

Steve shakes his head, laughing softly to himself. “Thank you, Tony. For everything,” he said, and Tony smiles up at him. 

“Of course, Cap,” Tony replied. He then glances at Sam. “Or, should I be calling Wilson over there Cap now? The youngsters taking over our roles?” 

“You got that right old timer,” Sam answered good naturedly. 

“Who’re you calling old?” Tony quips back, acting offended. Though, honestly, he was beyond happy. 

He'd won. 

They'd won.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me??? posting a second chapter in the same day??? it's more likely than you think
> 
> i already said i was writing like a madwoman 
> 
> this is the new canon guys

Rebuilding the Avengers Compound wasn't anything anyone but Pepper and the kid expected. He'd discussed with her and Morgan, and Peter as soon as everyone had said what they needed to say to him. 

“We can rebuild it better than before,” Tony told them, and Peter looks side to side, like he couldn't understand why he was there. “I'm telling you this too, kid, because I was wanting you and your aunt to move in, too.” 

Peter’s eyes had widened and his mouth had fallen open and he'd run out of them, saying something along the lines, “I'll go get her be right back!” Tony wasn't completely sure, though. 

Tony and May spoke with one another and, eventually, came upon an agreement. 

“You're something like his mentor, right?” she'd asked. 

“Something like that, yeah. Still don't know either.” he'd said. 

“Well he really looks up to you,” she'd told him. “And while I didn't appreciate you keeping the fact that you were helping my nephew go on dangerous missions as an interestingly masked person behind my back, continually endangering his life-” 

“Aunt Maaayyy,” Peter whined from his seat behind them, holding both hands with Morgan. Tony thought they had just been playing patty cake. “I already told you I told him not to tell you.” 

“Right,” May said, had nodded her head sharply. “Anyway, he looks up to you, and you've helped keep his little butt alive. He seems to listen to you better, too. So, sure, we’ll move in with you.” 

Tony began sketching plans out for the new compound as soon as he was able, letting Morgan chime in every now and again. “We should have a pool on the fifth floor,” she pointed out. 

“Oh yes, of course, on the fifth floor.” 

He wasn't allowed to walk for months. 

But as soon as the day came to test his leg strength, he was pushing up, body aching and protesting but he didn't care. He had stuff to do. He throws his legs over the edge of the bed, Pepper watching with worry. Peter was right beside him, ready to catch him if he were to fall. Rhodey stood nearby, keeping a watchful eye on him. 

Tony doesn't miss the fact that they had reversed roles in a short few years. He was grateful, though. Grateful that he was still there. 

Morgan was out with who she was now calling “Auntie Carol”. Tony still didn't know the woman well, but Morgan had seemed to click with the superwoman seconds after meeting her. Almost everyone did. 

Tony sets his left foot down first, the floor cold against his skin. 

He puts his weight on it, finding it able. That was to be expected. It wasn't his right foot, after all. He was more worried about that one. 

With great difficulty, Tony makes his right foot move, gritting his teeth as the flesh aches. 

He places it on the ground beside the left, pushes from the bed. He keeps the weight on his left foot, does his best to keep his balance as he straightens to a semi standing position. He keeps his hand on the bed for support, notices how the other three in the room grew tense. 

“I got it, I got it,” Tony said, but even to him that reassurance was weak. Yet he still tries, slides his right foot forward, begins to set his weight on it. 

And pitches to that side, hitting the ground even as both Peter and Rhodey come forward to catch him. His head slams against the ground, and he lets out a noise of annoyance, lets Rhodey help him back up, leans on him. 

“Yeah, you'll get it,” Rhodey said encouragingly. “You'll get there. Just like I did.” 

Tony really appreciates him. 

He's not sure how long it takes him to be able to stand fully, to walk. Though, when he is finally able to walk, he has to use a cane. 

“I feel like an old man,” he complained to Rhodey one day. The other laughs. 

“Well, I’m sure you’ll be able to make some kind of leg brace like you did for me,” he pointed out, watching Tony walk along a park path. Different colored leaves are drifting lazily through the air around them, the yellow grass crunching beneath Rhodey’s feet. “You’ll get there eventually, bud.” 

Once he gets the hang of walking with his cane, he sets the arrangements to have the compound rebuilt. A week into the process, he runs into none other than Carol, who currently had Morgan sitting on her shoulders. 

“Hi Daddy!” Morgan greeted with a huge grin. “Auntie Carol is making me fly!” 

Tony smiles back at her, his heart warm. Seeing Morgan so happy… 

“You got that right, space cadet,” Carol said, bouncing the heels of her feet. Morgan giggles. She then focuses on Tony. “How are you feeling, Stark?” 

“Just call me Tony,” he said with the wave of his hand. It always made him feel silly when people called him Stark, or Mr. Stark. He's still working on getting the kid to stop. He's gotten Peter to call him Mr. Tony now. It was a work in progress. “Could I talk to you real quick?” 

He hadn't been planning on doing it now, but he could have the conversation. Give the offer to her. 

“Oh, sure,” Carol said, grabbing Morgan by the sides. She tickles the little girl a tiny bit, gaining high pitched squeals. “You run along to your mom now, space cadet.” 

“I'm gonna go see Petey!” Morgan exclaimed, and runs off with her bare feet slapping the tile flooring of the base they'd been staying in. One of Fury’s, actually. One that Carol had somehow led them to. Tony was going to ask her about that later. Or maybe Fury, once he turned up again. 

Carol glances to Tony, eyes flicking up and down like she was making sure he wouldn’t topple over. “Don't worry. I've still got about ten minutes before my leg gives out,” Tony jokes, and Carol snorts. 

“So what did you want to talk about?” the superwoman inquires. Light coming in through the windows beside them makes her hair look almost like it were glowing, which Tony wouldn't be surprised if it was. The woman literally was glowing during both of their fights and in space. 

“Well, I know you're kind of a space warrior nomad,” Tony began, waving his hand for emphasis. He quickly grabs his cane again when his entire body sways, leg aching, “but even the nomadiest of nomads sometimes need a place to come home to.” 

Carol raises an eyebrow at his words, her lips curling upwards in an amused smile. “Did you just say nomadiest?” 

“Yes, I know, it was dumb, but anyway,” Tony grips his cane tighter, making sure to keep himself from waving it about dramatically. “I was wanting to offer you a place to come home to.” Carol’s eyes widen in disbelief. “Both Morgan and the kid and the rest of the team have taking a liking to you and we could use you sometimes to our advantage. You don't always need to stay, and you can come and go as you please, but I was just thinking it'd be nice for you to have a home, you know?” 

Carol stares at him for a few seconds like he'd grown a second head and he quickly says, “You don't have to though, of course. Your choice. Couldn't make it not your choice after all. You're kind of crazy powerful and all.” 

The superwoman stares at him a few more seconds before a large smile breaks across her face. She turns to the large windows, staring out of it with the light reflecting off her powerful eyes. She looks thoughtful, grateful. 

“I appreciate the offer,” she said, returning her gaze to Iron Man. “I think I’ll have to accept it, too. Been needing to hang around on Earth again for a while.” 

Tony smiles in return to her, glad that she accepted. 

“Oh, I just hope you don't mind me bringing a pet along,” she said quickly. Tony raises an eyebrow. 

“You have a pet even though you've been in space?” 

“A friend has been watching him for me,” Carol said with a shrug. Then she presses her lips together thinly. “Or, he was supposed to be. Probably couldn't while he was snapped, though.” 

“Yeah, probably not,” Tony said in agreement. “You should probably check up on that.” 

“Uh… yeah,” Carol said, nodding. She begins to turn, pointing over her shoulder. “I’ll be… right back.” 

Tony watches the glow from before envelop her entire body before she launches off, disappearing quickly in the distance. He watches until she's fully gone, her glow remaining a few moments afterwards. 

Then, he turned, needing to lay down. 

 

He's in the kitchen the next day when Peter finds him. “Oh, hey, Mr. St- Tony!” the kid greeted, almost falling on old habits again. He walks over to the elder, helping him grab a bag of tortillas from a higher shelf of the pantry. 

“Thanks,” Tony said with a tight smile. And then the million mile an hour questions begins:

“How are you feeling? Do you need help? Want me to make you lunch? Should you sit down? Lay down? Do you-” 

“I'm okay, kid,” Tony said, leaning his weight against a counter as he raised a hand to stop the continuous flow of questions. He sets the bag of tortillas down, meets Peter’s eyes. He could still hardly believe that the kid was back. Which was a tad ridiculous, but… he was glad he was here again. He'd missed the endless stream of questions and the random stuttering in the kid’s voice. Getting him back made the whole fight worth it. 

“Mrs. Potts told me not to believe you if you told me that,” Peter said, his eyes wide as he blinked owlishly. 

“Yeah well, that's a load of bologna,” Tony replied, waving a tortilla he had managed to wrestle out of the bag in the kid’s face. He was currently attempting to make himself a quesadilla, not wanting to make anything large. Not that he really necessarily could, though. He was still adjusting to having one arm. He'd already started the plans to make arm braces for both Bruce and himself but it would take a while to make one for the much larger Bruce. And he'd already decided that as long as Bruce didn't have one, neither would he. Scientist and arm buddies stick together. “Cause I'm completely, totally, 100 percent fine.” 

Of course his leg has to seize right after he said that, and of course he nearly has to fall. Of course the kid has to catch him and help him stand again, and of course he had to make the tortilla go flying across the room and on the floor. Just his luck. 

“I'll make a quesadilla for you.” 

“You’ll make a quesadilla for me.” 

Peter follows Tony to the nearby kitchen table and makes sure he sits down before he goes back to the counter, grabbing two tortillas and a handful of cheese. “What kinds of cheeses do you want?” the kid called over his shoulder. 

“Any and all,” Tony replied, running his hand through his beard as he watches Peter work. “I like cheese.” 

“Cheese is good, yeah,” Peter said in agreement. He pops the plate in the microwave and sets it to melt the cheese. Then he turns to Tony, swallowing heavily. He kicks at the ground and Tony could already tell this was going to change the atmosphere with whatever he wanted to say. 

“Hey, before you say anything to me about something,” Tony said, and Peter’s eyes dart up to meet his. “Finish my quesadilla. Please and thank you.” 

Peter nods quickly and pulls the food out once it's ready. He passes it over to the millionaire and sits down at the other side of the table, staring at the wood. 

Tony was going to slice the quesadilla up into different pieces, but pauses when he spots the kid’s forlorn expression. He sighs heavily and pauses in his work, snapping his fingers. That felt weird, and he decided not to do it again, but it gets the kid’s attention. “You gonna say what's on your mind or you just gonna sit there?” 

Peter wets his lips and grabs the edge of the table, shifting in his seat. “Oh, uh, right,” he said, avoiding Tony’s gaze now. “I just… I wanted to say sorry and I-”

“Okay, you already said that to me, and if you ever do again, I will rip your tongue out,” Tony said in interruption, causing Peter’s eyes to widen. Tony almost hits himself. “Okay, that was a little mean. Let me try that again.” He rubs his hand down his face and clears his throat. “You said that to me when you-” his words catch and he has to clear his throat again- “dusted, and left me thinking you were dead for five years. I really didn't like that.” 

The kid stares at him, blinking just as owlishly as before. “Oh, uh, sorry!” he stutters out, speaking quickly. “I remember now, sorry, no, wait, I'm not! I am but I'm not sorry and oh shoot I can't stop-” 

“What did you mean?” Tony said, making the kid stop in his rambling. 

“Huh?” 

“When you apologized before. What did you mean?” 

Peter draws in a deep breath through his nose, and finally meets his eyes again, cheeks puffed out a tiny bit. Tony would have laughed at the look if he didn't know the kid was being serious. 

“I was sorry for leaving you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah ok i think this is the last one
> 
> but i am gonna be posting another post endgame au fic. in that one thor is gonna have a spa night with all of the lesbians of marvel ùwú
> 
> but anyway this was fun to write and good for my emotions. 
> 
> probably will have to write another similar fic on friday, though. watching it again lol

It only takes about a month for the compound to rebuilt with the amount of money Tony put into it getting built. Today was the day they were all moving in, and Carol was landing with a single bag and what appeared to be an orange cat in her arms. She steps towards Tony, and stands beside him in front of the brand new gates. The cat meows and hops down from her arms, rubbing itself along Tony’s legs. 

“Ah. The pet,” Tony said, staring down at the cat with a semi disgruntled look. He notices something then. He looks from the cat to Carol’s haircut and his eyes widen in realization. “What's its name?” 

Carol scowls at him. “His name is Goose,” she said matter of factly. “Poor thing was left when Fury was dusted.” 

That causes Tony’s mouth to fall open. “Did you just say… Fury? As in he cat sat for you?” he asked, not believing it in the slightest. 

“Uh… yeah?” Carol said in return, scratching Goose behind the ear. “Though, Goose is more of shared between us. He's basically both our cat, but I was wanting to see him while I was here.” 

“Nick Fury. We’re talking about the same guy, Right? The same Fury?”

“What other Fury is there?” 

Tony blinks repeatedly, his brain having a minor meltdown. “Next thing you're going to tell me  
is that that's what scratched his eye out,” he said, half pointing at the cat. Goose starts purring, looking quite content with himself. 

“Probably cause he is,” Carol says, pushing the gate to the compound open. Tony blinks a few more times, feeling a lot like Peter in that moment. Goose follows after Carol, his tail held up in the air with a crook at the end. 

“You've gotta be shitting me,” Tony said, shaking his head as a chuckle breaks past his lips. “Of course that's how it happened.”

He then follows after Carol, calling after her, “You have got to tell me more embarrassing stories about Fury that I can use.” 

Carol smirks at him over her shoulder, and Tony could tell that that was a promise. 

 

Once Carol finished moving in her room- which has a workout room directly beside it- Tony calls Morgan and Pepper in. They come in the following day and Morgan has her very own playroom. Pepper remarks on how she would become spoiled eventually. 

“When is Petey gonna come too?” Morgan asks, hopping on the tips of her toes as she tugs on Tony’s sleeve. He looks down to her, picking her up and tossing her through the air. She laughs with delight. 

“Should be the next few days,” he replied. “Not too long.” 

“But days take forever!” Morgan complained, giving him a pouty face. 

“Well, until he gets here, play with Carol and her fuzzy monster you seem to like.” 

“Daddy! Goose isn't a monster!” Morgan laughs at the sheer ridiculousness of what her father had said, and Tony purses his lips. 

“Oh really? Are you sure?” he asked her. 

“Of course not! He's a cat!” 

“Huh. Thought that was a monster.” 

“You're silly Daddy!” Morgan giggles, and then slides from his arms to the floor again. She then takes off for Carol’s room, feet tapping against the floor. 

 

Peter and May move in not long after, and Peter gives Tony a hug upon arriving. Which is a bold move for the kid, since he used to be so awkward and nervous around him. Tony returns the hug, using his single arm to wrap it around the kid's shoulders. 

May greets him with a smile before she and Pepper start talking with one another, Pepper leading the way to her and Peter’s rooms. Happy trails in after, struggling to pull along a number of suitcases. 

“I told him we'd handle it,” May was saying, “but he just wouldn't let us.” 

“That's Happy for you,” Pepper said in return. 

“So it's just gonna be us living here?” Peter asked, pulling away from the hug a moment later. Tony shrugs, leaning against his cane now. 

“Well, it's us and Carol,” he replied. “And I was going to see about asking some of the others, too.” 

“Like who?” Peter asked curiously, staring forward with the eyes of a puppy. 

Tony begins to walk in the direction of Pepper and May, Happy dragging the suitcases a few steps ahead. Peter follows him, slowing his pace to match Tony’s as if he weren't going at the speed of a snail. God his speed was annoying. 

“I was thinking Wanda and Steve along with his gang,” Tony answers, his cane tapping the floor as they walked. He needed to get his prosthetics already, he was getting tired of the cane and the limping. “They don't really seem to have a home without this compound, ya know?” 

“Yeah!” Peter said in agreement. “And maybe you could invite Scott and Clint, too!” 

“Kid, I like your thinking.” 

 

And so Tony invites the others, and only takes mild convincing on Clint and Scott to have them come as well. Clint and Scott bring their families and Steve drags Bucky and Sam along with him. 

“You take care of the stones?” Tony asks Steve one day while they sit outside. The Fall air is cool and crisp, and it's easy on Tony’s lungs and chest. He has his damaged arm resting on the chair’s armrest, slowly flexing his fingers. FRIDAY had told him he could start trying to move the right side of his body, but he had to do it slowly and gradually. 

“They're all in the right places,” Steve replied, leaned back in the chair beside Tony’s. He glances to the other, eyes flickering up and down his damaged body. “How are you feeling?” 

Tony looks over at Steve, shrugging his able shoulder. “Still hurts like hell, but that's to be expected,” he said, closing his fingers into a fist. He smirks at his own small and personal achievement, but says nothing about it. Well, he doesn't until he's able to straighten his pointer and middle finger out, keeping the rest curled in. He raises his hand, giving Steve a peace sign. “Heh. I did it.” 

Steve smiles warmly. “That's great, Tony.” 

Tony opens his mouth to complain about how tender Steve was doing, but is interrupted by the door flying open. Morgan, Peter, Cassie along with all of Clint’s kids come pouring out, Goose sat on Morgan’s shoulder as she runs. Clint and Scott come out after them, Clint carrying a bag of charcoal and Scott a bag of meat. Tony stares at them with wide eyes as they look at him expectantly. 

“What the hell is going on here?” Tony asked the group, throwing his hand about dramatically. 

“They want to have a barbecue.” It was Barnes who said that as the former soldier steps outside as well, one of Clint’s kids on his shoulders. Tony thinks that this kid is Cooper, though he could be wrong. “And so do I, actually.” 

“Yeah, barbecue!” Morgan exclaimed, jarring Goose, though the cat doesn't seem to mind. “Uncle Scott and Clint wanna cook is food!”

“Yup. So where's the smoker and grill?” Clint inquires, holding the bag of charcoal over his shoulder. 

Tony stares at the entire group for a moment, before he pushes up to his feet with a grunt. They all fall silent as he stands, as if talking could knock him back over. Steve watches him warily, and then looks over at Bucky. 

“So you think… you can have,” each pause is highlighted with a grunt of effort as Tony finally gets to his feet, his good arm propped on his side. “A barbecue without me?” 

Morgan grins widely, and skips over to her father. “Come on come on! You can help cook, too!” 

Steve stands up now as well, clapping his hands together. “Oh no, I think Buck and I should cook. You youngsters probably don't know how to have a proper barbecue.”

“Oh, is that so?” Clint remarks, smirking. 

“Oh it must be so,” Scott points out matter of factly, already holding the bag of meat out for Bucky to take. “Captain America always knows what he's talking about.” Peter scrunches his face up at Scott’s words, almost similar to when Quill has said Thor wasn't attractive before. 

“You know I'm not Captain America anymore,” Steve said with annoyance, but he's smiling as he takes the bag from Scott. Bucky is helping Cooper back to the ground, here the kid runs to Peter next. Peter places Cooper on his shoulders just as Bucky has now. 

“You will always be Captain America in my mind,” Scott replies. 

Tony shakes his head as he hobbled over to where the high tech grill and smoker are and presses a button, letting them slide out from the compound’s wall. In fact, an entire porch with the two appliances slides out for full access. A couple of tables are in the center and a large brick fireplace resides on the other side. Tony gestures at the new set without enthusiasm. “Go nuts, old guys.” 

“I'm going to ignore that you just said that,” Barnes remarked, holding his hand out expectantly to Clint. Clint presses his lips together and turns, ignoring the hand. Barnes’s eyebrows scrunch together and he follows after the marksmen. 

“Now, give us old guys a few hours and we’ll make you the best 40’s barbecue you’ll ever have,” Steve announces, and the group of kids cheer. 

“I didn't even know there was a subsection of 40’s barbecue food!” Peter exclaimed. 

“I think he made that up,” Cassie said suspiciously. 

“Barbecuuuuueee!” Morgan cries, basically dancing with Goose in her hands. 

“I'm sure my dad would have made better food, but whatever,” Lalie said with a shrug. 

Tony snorts and retakes his seat, watching the group running around. What a large family he has indeed. 

He was content.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)

**Author's Note:**

> uh yeah
> 
> i cried


End file.
